FIRST ON THE BLOG: Major changes are coming to literary every English-language TV station in the Imperial Valley that airs local news.

Starting Monday January 16th, more local news coverage is coming from across all four stations because all four are operated by the News-Press and Gazette Company, starting from morning and right through night-time.

First… Mornings. The weekday morning newscast that KYMA 11 airs from 6:00-7:00am remains in place, but will now be simulcast on KECY 9’s second digital subchannel, known as ABC 5 (hence cable channel). It will also air a second LIVE hour of that weekday morning newscast from 7:00-8:00am on its sister station KECY 9.

Next… Afternoons and Evenings. KSWT 13 will keep its hour-long weekday 4:00pm newscast, but will instead move the 5:00pm newscast over to 6:30pm to create the area’s ONLY hour-long weeknight newscast at 6:00pm. No word as to what KSWT 13 will fill the 5:00pm timeslot with. KYMA 11 will keep its half-hour weeknight news at 5:00 and 6:00pm and the 5:00pm will also simulcast on KECY 9.2, thus effectively ending the 5:30pm weeknight newscast that was offered to ABC 5 as ABC World News TONIGHT will air in its place.

Finally… Late-Nights. The 9:00pm weeknight half-hour newscast that airs on KECY 9 will change into a KYMA 11-branded newscast and now produced by KYMA 11, but will remain as a half-hour newscast at that time, providing the Imperial Valley with the area’s ONLY local newscast on at that time. KYMA 11 and KSWT 13 will continue to air their branded half-hour weeknight newscasts at 10:00pm, with KYMA 11’s 10:00pm also simulcast on KECY 9.2.

No word as to if weekends will change at all as well. Here is the full list in which all changes begin Monday January 16th:

9:00-9:30 PM: News 11 at 9:00 on FOX 9 (remains the same, but with a new name)

Weekdays on KSWT 13:

4:00-5:00 PM: 13 On Your Side at 4:00 (remains the same)

6:00-7:00 PM: 13 On Your Side at 6:00 (moves the 5:00pm half-hour to 6:30pm)

10:00-10:35 PM: 13 On Your Side at 10:00 (remains the same)

Again, the 5:30pm weekday newscast that was on KECY 9.2 will be discontinued as ABC World News TONIGHT will air in its place. Just a note to remember.

So a whole lot of changes coming in less than two weeks time and it seems like the stations are ready for it, but will the viewers of just a monopoly news market watch any of them? That question remains to be answered soon enough.

3 thoughts on “Changes coming soon in the Imperial Valley that mainly affect every local TV news station.”

KYMA or KSWT should have put a noon newscast on as part of the expansion or invested in a noon newscast since the Yuma Market does not have a noon newscast. I know years back KYMA use to have a noon newscast.